Marathon UpdateMeet Me in St. Louis"Skip to My Lou, my darling." Meet Me in St. Louis is a bit of an oddball for me. I watch a lot of musicals. My wife loves Bing Crosby and Christmas films, and stories that take place at the turn of the century. I'm generally very forgiving of their faults, and can enjoy them simply for the charisma of the performers. Films like Holiday Inn, Swing Time and Yankee Doodle Dandy are favored around the household. They're not even of the quality of Singing in the Rain or Mary Poppins, but they can brighten your day on a Sunday afternoon.
Meet Me in St. Louis starts like one of those. It's bright and cheery, there's love about to bloom in a couple of directions and the large family dynamic is extremely engaging, much like how people cheered for the clan in Little Miss Sunshine. I really liked the opening section, and its closing number, "The Trolley Song" is one of the most transporting moments I've seen in this marathon. I feel comfortable saying it's my favorite single scene I've watched this year since Toy Story 3.
I'm sure flieger is skipping down to where I get all negative, but I want to go on about the greatness of "The Trolley Song", which I thought I could never again enjoy after SNL's Sweeney Sisters butchered it repeatedly. It's an amazing scene where at first everyone on the trolley but Garland is singing. The man she longs for didn't make it onboard and she's treated as if invisible and constantly in the way. Then she sees him running to get on board and her body fills with life as she takes over the song and everyone else becomes window dressing. Their large hats frame her and the passengers hang on her every note. She fills this bubblegum ditty with meaning. Makes it important. As important as love itself. And it ends with an awkward glance when she realizes the man she longs for is taking a seat right next to her. You hear about a song being someone's inner thoughts, and she realizes he can hear her. It's a great slide back to reality.
Then the film starts to go wrong. Starting with the above image and continuing for the next 5-7 minutes. Two little girls joining other tykes in a bonfire and scaring neighbors with flour. It's like I entered a different film. The tone was way off, and the main story that I was so invested in got dumped for an overlong sequence whose purpose made little sense. I ask you flieger, why not start when the littlest one is injured? What's so important about the rest, and why is so much time wasted on it. My favorite part of the Halloween section - sadly the only part of it I like at all - is the way the father brings the family back together at the very end. It's actually quite beautiful, both in the way it adds dimension to the father and how the character entrances are directed. Through some really smart visuals, you feel the family unit connecting once again.
Now that the door is open for questions, the Christmas section also becomes wobbly. I loved the Grandpa here, and there's a magical moment involving dancing and a Christmas tree, but the conflict felt rushed, more of a written crisis than something I had time to live in. I never get to care about John. Why is this so hurried when the opening was relaxed enough to include the little girl crashing the party for a big song and dance routine? And why did it get so serious during Christmas? I wasn't expecting such a melodramatic approach taken to plots that were more romantic comedy. This is Meet Me in St. Louis, not All That Heaven Allows. The resolution is similar to what happens in Mary Poppins, but it actually carries more weight in the less dramatic Disney film.
I would argue that Meet Me in St. Louis is a film that could be improved with a remake. I see special magic all over, but in it's current state it's completely wrong.
Compared to my Top 100 of the 00's...Meet Me In St. Louis wouldn't make my Top 100, but there is potential greatness in it.
Next Up:Last Year in Marienbad
Les Diaboliques
The Red Shoes